Fū

"I'll ask, you answer." Sasuke's eyes turned blood red, and the three black Tomoe slowly rotated as he spoke succinctly.

They wandered around Takigakure for a week, shaking off the Anbu who were secretly following them, before finally finding this sparsely populated place.

Sasuke Sharingan genjutsu against the people of Takigakure —and likely Takikage's younger brother, given his name and striking resemblance to Takikage —cannot be discovered, otherwise the problem will become serious, and Konoha's Sharingan Genjutsu will be greatly diminished.

Bewildered and controlled by the Genjutsu, Shibuki stared blankly into the distance, his eyes unfocused, and unconsciously uttered, "Yes."

After exchanging a glance with Sakura Haruno, Sasuke cut to the Gate of Opening and asked, "Who is the Jinchūriki of Takigakure?"

Someone could appear at any moment, so Sasuke and his group didn't have time to waste and immediately asked the most important question.

However, the results were not good.

"Jinchūriki..." Shibuki's expression suddenly twisted violently, and he gritted his teeth, refusing to speak. The mention of this word seemed to have aroused his strong vigilance. Jinchūriki was their top secret, and even under the control of Genjutsu, he still subconsciously resisted answering this question!

"... I... can't..." Shibuki's eyes began to dart around; the intense stimulation seemed to be making him want to break free of the Genjutsu!

Sasuke snorted coldly, his Sharingan spinning rapidly, consuming a large amount of ocular power to maintain the Genjutsu, finally stabilizing Shibuki, whose mental state was fluctuating greatly.

"It seems we'll need to use some techniques," Sakura Haruno said to Sasuke, her brow furrowed slightly.

Sakura was a little surprised. This seemingly shy and timid ninja, who didn't even dare to look at her directly and only dared to steal glances at her profile, was surprisingly resolute when his bottom line was crossed.

"Hmm, he must have been trained," Sasuke nodded. "It seems we can't directly ask him about Jinchūriki."

He casually asked Shibuki some other questions, such as what his favorite scenery was, and who was in his family.

"My parents are dead, and my older brother Shibuchi is the current Takikage." Shibuki answered these questions quickly.

"Is your brother strong?" Sasuke then asked.

"He's incredibly strong; I can never beat him."

"Does the village have a ninja stronger than your brother?"

There is one.

Sasuke and Sakura exchanged a glance, a slight excitement welling up inside them, and asked, "Who is it?"

According to their estimates, Shibuchi is at most on par with Sasuke, while the Jinchūriki of Tailed Beast are at least Kage Level ninjas. Therefore, the only ninja stronger than the Takikage can only be the Seven-Tails Jinchuriki of Waterfall Ninja!

"..." Faced with this question, Shibuki remained silent.

"Tsk!" Sakura frowned even more, saying, "No matter how you ask him, as soon as he realizes that he's about to mention information about Jinchūriki, he'll shut up or struggle violently."

"Takigakure is very careful about this... Those who know the information have all received rigorous training, no wonder they've been able to keep this secret for so long!" Sasuke's calm expression also carried a hint of helplessness.

"Is there any other way?" Sharingan couldn't do anything to him, then Sakura Haruno had no way to deal with him either. Her Ninjutsu could crack open Shibuki's head, but it was powerless to make him speak.

"I can also cast even more powerful Genjutsu."

Sasuke frowned and said in a cold voice.

"Are there any risks?" Sakura asked, noticing Sasuke's somewhat serious expression.

"The stronger the Genjutsu, the greater the damage it inflicts. This next Genjutsu will shatter his consciousness, forcibly extracting the protected information from his mind; so if he's not careful and his consciousness can't be reassembled when the Genjutsu is dispelled, he might become an idiot..."

"Hmm..." Sakura Haruno pursed her lips and remained silent.

She was always ruthless and merciless towards her enemies. But Shibuki wasn't an enemy; strictly speaking, he was one of their allies in the fight against Akatsuki. Was it really appropriate to use such a dangerous technique on him?

The girl's expression momentarily became conflicted.

"Don't worry, I'll control my strength." Sasuke smiled slightly and patted her shoulder. "You keep watch for me!"

Before Sakura could say anything, he turned to Shibuki: "Who is the Seven-Tails Jinchuriki, and what are his characteristics?"

Upon hearing the question about Jinchūriki, Shibuki's indifferent expression twisted again. His consciousness, which had been suppressed by the Genjutsu, was strongly stimulated and began to become active, resisting Sasuke's Genjutsu.

Sasuke stared intently at him. This was the moment; if he could completely shatter Shibuki's will, he could extract the real information!

The black Tomoe began to spin wildly, his pupil power highly concentrated, and he clasped his hands together in front of his chest, preparing to Hand Seals!

Snap! A slender white hand suddenly reached out and pressed against the boy's palm, stopping Sasuke's Hand Seals.

Sasuke was startled and turned around to look.

"Heart, someone's coming!" Sakura said in a serious voice.

Located near a waterfall, she infused the mist rising from the falls with her Chakra, making it closely linked to her senses. Anyone entering the mist would be detected by her, thus creating a vast-area reconnaissance Ninjutsu.

"Water Mist Freedom Technique, Release!"

Sakura Haruno withdrew her Chakra, Sasuke quickly dispelled the Genjutsu, Shibuki rubbed his eyes, waking up from the Genjutsu.

"What just happened to me?" Shibuki shook his slightly dizzy head, quickly regaining his senses.

"You just asked us to see a rainbow," Sakura said with a faint smile, her expression having softened from its previous seriousness, "And you got completely absorbed in it."

Shibuki looked in the direction Sakura Haruno was pointing to with her right hand.

The spray from the waterfall refracts and reflects the sunlight, creating a flawless rainbow in mid-air. The magnificent waterfall and the rainbow suspended in the air are as beautiful as a dream.

No matter how many times he saw it, Shibuki still found the scene breathtakingly beautiful. Had he just been lost in thought here? He found an excuse for his earlier reverie, opened his arms to the gentle breeze, and took a deep breath of fresh air. "Yes, it's truly beautiful!"

"But this isn't the most spectacular time." He snapped out of his reverie and chuckled, "Sometimes in July and August, there are thunderstorms, and after the rain stops, the water level rises dramatically, making the waterfall even more magnificent, and the rainbow even clearer—wait, what do you mean?"

As he was working, a figure suddenly darted through the air, calling out sweetly behind him, "Idiot, idiot~ You can't catch me!"

The three people on the ground stared in astonishment at her flying figure. She turned her head at that moment, and the four pairs of eyes met.

A flying ninja? Sakura Haruno and Sasuke exchanged a glance.

"Fu? What are you doing here?!" Shibuki exclaimed in surprise, his eyes wide.

The figure flying at high speed suddenly stopped, hovering in the air. It was a girl with a pair of butterfly wings on her back. She said to Shibuki with annoyance, "Why can't I be here! Are you here to bring someone to find me too?"

"Wait, something's not right, you're not from our village!" The girl named Fu glanced at the two ninjas behind Shibuki, their unfamiliar faces immediately piquing her curiosity.

She landed on the ground, and the wings on her back vanished instantly.

Sakura Haruno scrutinized her closely. The green-haired, dark-skinned girl appeared to be around fourteen or fifteen years old, about the same age as Sakura. She was dressed in a very avant-garde style, with a two-piece crop top that completely exposed her delicate collarbones, slender waist, and shapely, straight thighs. The breathable mesh bra beneath the light, flowing clothes was barely concealed, making Sakura blush slightly.

Wearing this kind of clothing to fly... is it just a way to hand out welfare?

When she was floating in the air just now, from the perspective of people on the ground, it seemed like she could see everything, both what she should and shouldn't see...

However, what truly caught Sakura Haruno's attention was the wings behind her. There are very few ninjas in the Shinobi World who can fly; generally, only those who have mastered the Earth Release technique to a high degree can master the Secret Technique that allows them to fly at high speeds.

Deidara, whom she had previously defeated, could at least be considered to be able to fly. That was the first time in Sakura's life that she had encountered a ninja who could fight while flying. However, flying while standing on a flying vehicle and flying with wings of their own were obviously not comparable.

In terms of both speed and agility, Fu is far superior to Deidara.

This Secret Technique of growing wings and flying is completely unlike the style of Takigakure. Sakura Haruno glanced at Shibuki discreetly. The ninjas in their village all looked rather pathetic, not like the kind of people who come up with all sorts of Secret Technique.

Moreover, her Chakra seems quite extraordinary.

Sakura subconsciously began to think about how to deal with this ninja who could fly at high speed.

Fu also glanced at the two of them a few times, and when she saw Sasuke's Forehead Protector, she exclaimed with delight, "You're Konoha ninjas!"

She hopped forward, giggling, and said, "This is the first time I've ever seen ninjas from another village! Are you here to visit our village? We have so many fun places to go! Shall I show you around?"

"We are envoys sent to your village, and we will be leaving tomorrow," Sakura Haruno said calmly. "I'm sorry we won't have time to sightsee. Thank you for your kindness."

"Oh~ the envoy." Fu exaggeratedly drew out her words, her smile fading slightly, and said, "Tch, is it going to be more boring business? How dull! Shibuki, I'm so bored, come play with me, okay?"

Shibuki's face stiffened, and he said angrily, "Didn't Lord Takikage tell you not to go outside the village during this time?! Why did you run out again!"

"I didn't run away~" She blinked, looking at Shibuki with innocent eyes, "I flew out! That's why you didn't notice I sneaked out at all! Hehe!"

Fu laughed triumphantly.

"Damn it, is this something you should be proud of?!" Shibuki roared, furious. "Get back to the village right now!"

"I don't want to!" Fu pouted, pointing at Shibuki. "All you people do is lecture! There's no danger at all, so why do you keep preventing me from leaving the village?"

This girl is completely spoiled.

Sakura Haruno suddenly had a thought and said, "This isn't some kind of teaching. In fact, our trip to your village this time, besides discussing your village's participation in this Chunin Ninja Exams, is more importantly about discussing the Akatsuki. They're coming with great force, and each of them is a notorious and highly skilled wanted criminal. Even the Tailed Beast are no match for them. You'd better be careful not to get captured by them!"

"What?!" Fu Hua's face paled. "Someone really is coming—waaaah!"

Shibuki swiftly covered her mouth with his hand.

But it was too late.

(Second update, making up for yesterday's missed update.)